


More Than a House

by uofmdragon



Series: More Than... Series [1]
Category: Marvel (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Banking, Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov Friendship, House Flipping, Inspired by Jeremy Renner's side jobs, M/M, Phil Coulson & Nick Fury Friendship, Renovations, canoeing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-04
Updated: 2013-04-04
Packaged: 2017-12-07 11:11:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,480
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/747858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/uofmdragon/pseuds/uofmdragon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Phil Coulson is living a quiet, small town life.  When the old Carter place next door is bought by a handsome renovator.</p><p>Clint Barton has been all over: buying houses, fixing them, and flipping houses.  He's never felt a desire to stay until he gets to know his latest next door neighbor.</p>
            </blockquote>





	More Than a House

**Author's Note:**

> This is for my trope bingo card: AU: Neighbors. 
> 
> Clint's job was inspired by Jeremy Renner's second career as a house flipper and the interviews where he stated that he couldn't shower at home before an awards show, because he had no power and no water. The house he's renovating is based on my parent's house. The neighborhood and town are loosely based on the town where that house is located.
> 
> Beta'd by eponis, allochthan, and pyroblaze18.

Phil Coulson lived an average, normal life. He worked at the local Credit Union as the Branch Manager of a small town. He had a routine for his everyday life that he only broke when he was sick or during a holiday. Every day, he would get up, go for a run, eat his breakfast of oatmeal and fruit and go to work at precisely 7:45 am. He would eat his lunch of leftovers from the night before from noon to one. The credit union closed its lobby at five and its drive-thru at 5:30, so unless there was a problem he was home by approximately six o'clock. He would make himself dinner with just enough extras for lunch the next day and then read the paper. He would do a quick check of email and then watch a little TV, before bed. On Saturday, he would be home at one, and after a quick stop at the local library, would clean the house and do his laundry. Sundays, he slept in, before going to church. He wasn't particularly a religious man, but he lived in a small town and that was the thing to do on Sundays. He stayed for coffee hour and visited with the fellow members; once a year he spent a Saturday baking and hosted the coffee hour. Then he went home and relaxed by reading the book he'd gotten the day before from the library. Some people Phil knew would consider his life terribly dull, but Phil didn't; he had his job, he had his friends, and only in the middle of winter when the wind was howling outside as he climbed into his cold bed and looked at the empty side of it, did he admit that he was just a little bit lonely.

Phil Coulson lived three houses down from the corner of his block; his house faced south and in the summer Phil would go and sit on his front porch while he read the paper. He could often overhear the cheers of the little league game from the nearby ballfield. Mrs. Carter had been his neighbor for years, before she'd passed away a year ago. She hadn't been a perfect neighbor. Often she'd try to set him up with a friend's daughter or granddaughter, which when Phil reluctantly agreed to, had ended most often in awkwardness. Phil could forgive her, because what skills she lacked as a matchmaker, she more than made up for with a combination of baking skills (she made him cookies every year for the holidays) and book suggestions. They had often discussed those suggestions, which invariably led to more suggestions. Phil hadn't minded helping her out with some yard work as she got older. It had given him a bit more work to do, but at least the yard looked nice and by extension it had made the rest of the street a little nicer. The house had sat mostly vacant since her passing— her kids had come and gone through it, but hadn't done much to the house itself. Phil had given up keeping her yard up, when one morning after his run he'd discovered Mrs. Carter's prized book collection in the trash after their visit. If her children couldn't appreciate what she had loved and at least take the time to donate them to the library, then he was not going to do them any favors by taking care of the yard. He had rescued the books and had been steadily making his way through it, forgoing his usual trips to the library.

It was a situation that was bound to change, and that change was signaled by a Dodge Challenger, a Chevy Truck, and a cherry red Ford Mustang convertible. It was quite the collection of automobiles, and Phil stared at for them for a moment when he came home from work, before going inside and fixing dinner. By the time he was done eating, the truck and the convertible were gone and only the Challenger remained. Phil glanced at the house, but no lights were on, so he left them be, deciding he would be neighborly later.

The next day Phil came home to find a dumpster on the street and the dilapidated fence that had surrounded Mrs. Carter's small backyard in it. There was also a labrador sitting on the front porch that watched him with wary interest, but showed no signs of coming after him. Phil decided it wasn't best to approach his new neighbors just yet, but silently applauded them for getting rid of the fence.

*

Clint Barton was a man with no home. He had had plenty of houses, but none that he would call home. It had started when he was young and lived in a house with his parents, but he never wanted to be there with the yelling and the beatings. Home was supposed to be a safe place after all. He'd spent time other people's homes as he went from foster home to foster home, but none of them were his. Home was supposed to be somewhat permanent and Clint knew it was only a matter of time before he moved. He thought he found a moving home in the circus, but he had been betrayed far too often to ever think of it as home.

He did have some money stored away when he left the circus and bought his first house. It was small and falling apart. Clint had used his eclectic knowledge and had it fixed up within a year. He also ended up selling it for a tidy profit, to someone who loved it more than he ever could. It was how he started house flipping and he ended up making a decent amount of money at it. He didn't stick to one area for any lengthy period of time, because he'd discovered he didn't like being in one place. He got smarter as he went on and started picking up friends. The first had been Natasha, who drank like a sailor, but had the nimblest fingers ever. She handled anything electrical. The second was Thor, who was a master craftsman and could make truly beautiful cabinets and woodwork. He was also great at knocking down walls. Hell, the dude had named his sledgehammer after all. The final member was Lucky, who didn't really help and tended to get in the way, but watched their backs like the best damned guard dog ever. There were others, but they came and went depending on where Clint ended up, but Natasha, Thor, and Lucky had become the three constants in his life.

The Carter house was located near the local school and there was a playground and ball field nearby. It was the perfect place for a family, except the roof needed to be replaced years ago and the previous winter had caused damage to the house. Clint had gotten it for a steal and knew he was going to make a tidy profit with it. They had had to basically redo the wiring and the pipes, because it looked they were made from the leftovers of another job. It was going to take a lot of work, which was why Clint was going to save his money and stay in the house. Thor and Natasha weren't though, they'd gotten a motel room. 

Clint was vaguely aware of neighbors on all sides of the house, but seeing as he wasn't going to be around very long, he hadn't gone around to introduce himself. The neighbors didn't bother him either, at least not until Sunday morning when the man next door exited his house and went right up to the property line.

"Excuse me," the man yelled over the roar of the power tools and generator.

Clint killed the power to the saw and looked at the man. "Yeah?"

"You are aware it's the weekend?" The man asked.

"Yeah," Clint said.

"And that it's only 8 am," he added

"You're usually up and gone by this time," Clint pointed out.

"I sleep in one day a week," The man stated.

"Sorry, but I'm kind of on a tight schedule," Clint shrugged. "You're going to have to put up with it for a couple weeks."

The man glared, before suddenly smelling the air, "What's that smell?"

"Generator," Clint said, "Which will be running when we're working until Tasha gets the power going."

"And how long will that be?" the man asked.

The door slammed open and Tasha stormed outside. Clint looked at her, "Tasha, neighbor wants to know how long it's going to take to get the wiring up to date?"

Tasha glared at him, before cursing up a storm in Russian and heading for her truck.

Clint frowned, "Longer than we planned, I haven't heard her curse that much since Lincoln."

"How bad was it in Lincoln?" The man asked, staring after Natasha.

"Someone broke in and gutted the place, stole the wiring, the pipes..." Clint shook his head. He looked at the man. "Look, I want to get this house updated before winter—you're in the snowbelt, houses don't sell in the snow."

The man eyed him, "Can you try to keep it down on Sundays?"

"I'll try," Clint agreed.

The man started walking away and Clint just barely caught him muttering, "Whoever heard of contractors working on Sundays."

Clint glared at the man's back, because he owned the damn house, thank you very much.

*

Monday evening, Phil stepped outside and cautiously inhaled, no generator fumes and no hum of that generator. It was nice and peaceful. He settled on his porch swing with his paper and a glass of water and just listened to the quiet of the neighborhood. He was rather surprised to hear someone singing softly and the fall of water.

Phil couldn't help himself, because he was curious. He took the steps down his porch and went to head toward the back of his house and froze at the sight that greeted him. The contractor, the very well muscled contractor, appeared to be washing himself in the middle of his backyard. The water droplets that clung to the man's chest sparkled in the setting sun. Phil's breath caught as he stared at the man. _Gorgeous_ , his traitorous mind declared. He felt the urge to go over and touch, press against that skin and lick the droplets off.

He would have kept staring, if a cheer from the nearby ballfield hadn't gone up. His neighbor's head turned in that direction, before swiveling in another direction as he laughed, "Should we go see what's going on, Lucky?" He was clearly talking to the dog, his voice warm and affectionate and Phil realized that the singing had stopped. He turned, forcing himself to go back to his porch as he listened to the man continue talking to the dog, "Wanna go for a walk? Wanna come over here? Nah, you don't, cause you don't wanna get wet, do you?"

Phil headed up the steps to his porch and back inside. He decided to forgo the paper and take a shower instead. He didn't care for the water temperature, getting in as soon as he was stripped down. He wrapped his hand around his cock and worked himself efficiently, thoughts of the contractor running through his mind. He came with a moan into his forearm, muffling any sound that might have come out.

*

Clint woke up when Lucky's whining was too loud to ignore. He slid out of the sleeping bag, rubbing his dog's head as he reached for his tracksuit bottom. He glanced at his watch and found that it was still early. He tugged a t-shirt on and went to grab Lucky's leash to take him out for his morning walk.

The town was peaceful and lovely. Clint supposed that if he ever wanted to settle down, some place like this might be nice. He couldn't imagine settling down though, he'd have to find a normal job and what the hell would he do?

Clint paused as he caught sight of the neighbor exiting the house and froze at the sight. He had a weakness for a man in a well cut suit and had made many a mistake when it came to a well dressed man. He supposed it was primarily due to how fun it was to mess up those nice, neat lines. Clint hadn't really paid attention to the comings and goings of his neighbor, but then this was the first time he had a direct line of sight to his neighbor's suit clad ass. It was tailored, there was no way it would cup his ass that well without it being tailored. The jacket swished over his ass, cutting it from Clint's view, as his neighbor put it on after stepping outside. He turned, letting Clint see how well he wore that suit and he wore it very well. 

"Morning," his neighbor greeted as he made his way down the steps.

"Morning," Clint said. 

His neighbor flashed him a smile as he made his way to the detached garage behind the house. "Have a good day."

"You too," Clint called after him, before shaking his head. He glanced at Lucky, who had taken a seat next to him. "Damn."

*

Phil had just walked into his house on Thursday afternoon when there was a knock on his door. He frowned, heading to it and opened it to find a pizza delivery girl standing on his porch. "Can I help you?"

"I've got your pizza," The girl said with a slight 'duh' to her voice.

"I didn't order a pizza though," Phil said, patiently.

"Are you Clint?" The girls asked.

Phil frowned, trying to think of anyone he knew by the name of Clint. "No..."

"Is this 456 Sassafrass?"

"No, that's next door," Phil said, glancing toward the house currently being renovated. He glanced at the street and found none of the usual cars.

"Oh, sorry," the girl said, and turned and headed next door. Phil kept an eye on her through the window and sure enough, there was no answer. Phil debated quickly, before stepping outside and flagging the girl down and paying for his neighbor's pizza. 

He set the pizza on the table and considered it, he wasn't sure what he was going to do with it. He shouldn't have paid for it. While he hadn't caught sight of his neighbor showering again, he had seen the other man talking with his co-workers, maybe even his friends, with a smile that lit up his face. He was stunning and Phil wanted very much to get to know him.

It was a good thing it was still spring and the windows were thrown wide open, so he heard the car door slam. He glanced toward the street and caught sight of his neighbor lugging jugs up toward his house. Phil snagged the pizza and stepped outside.

"Clint?" he called out.

The man paused and turned to look at him, "Yeah?"

"I, uh, have your pizza," Phil said, holding the box up as he headed down the steps.

Clint blinked, "Did they come already?"

"Uh, yeah, they did," Phil said. "They came to my door first and I didn't see any of your usual cars."

Clint ducked his head, "I had to go to the store, I was out of water, and then got stopped by the train." Phil nodded in understanding, the train running through town would invariably hold up traffic.

"At least it wasn't a tanker," Phil said, "Those actually give us traffic in town, even when it isn't tourist season."

Clint laughed, "Well there are what two bridges connecting two parts of town?"

"Exactly," Phil agreed, "Unless you go the long way around, which really isn't worth it."

"There's a long way?" Clint asked.

Phil nodded. "It's good way to go when you're south of town and want to head toward Carson," he said, meaning the larger city about an hour east of town and not one of the smaller town along the way.

"Huh, Natasha has probably found it," Clint said.

"Your electrician?" Phil asked.

Clint nodded, and smiled at him, "That's her." He turned to set the jugs on his porch, before turning back around. Phil tilted his head slightly as he watched as those jeans pulled over Clint's ass while he could. The man turned back, "So... pizza?"

"Oh," Phil said, offering the box over. He blushed slightly, because he wasn't sure if he'd been caught staring.

"How much do I owe you?" Clint asked, taking it.

"Uh... don't worry about it," Phil stammered.

"You sure?" Clint questioned.

Phil nodded.

"Well, then we should at least share it?" Clint offered. "It's kind of too big for me to eat by myself, and no power, so really no way to store it."

"Sure," Phil said, without really thinking.

"Picnic on the porch?" Clint offered, indicating the porch.

"That works, do you have any, uh, plates?"

"It's pizza," Clint said, going to take a seat on the steps.

"Right," Phil said, taking a seat next to him. Clint smiled at him, popping open the box and pulling a slice out. He nudged it toward Phil and Phil took a slice out. He took a bite of it, trying not to drip cheese or sauce on his suit.

"So... this may be seem like a... douchey thing to ask, but, uh, what's your name again?" Clint asked, after he'd inhaled his first slice.

"Phil Coulson," Phil said. "And it's not a douchey thing to ask, I.only know yours, because of the delivery woman and even then, it's only your first name."

Clint chuckled softly, "Barton is the last name."

Phil nodded and decided that it suited the other man. "So, uh, the other two are where?"

"Thor is camping at the National Park, Natasha is staying at the motel by the beach."

"Why aren't you staying at one of those places?"

"Well, the house is in my name," Clint said.

"In your name?" Phil repeated. "You bought it?"

"Yeah, it's what I do, fix 'em up, sell 'em for a profit," Clint said. "Tasha and Thor use their own money to crash wherever, they could stay here with me, they're more than welcome to, but..."

"Tasha likes her amenities?" Phil guessed.

Clint laughed, "She won't ever admit to it, but yeah, she does. There are times, when I invite her, she looks and says, 'I didn't leave Russia to live in house with no power'." The last bit was said with a horrible Russian accent.

Phil chuckled softly.

"She totally can rough it, she just doesn't like to," Clint said with a shrug.

"And you'd rather stay here?"

"Well, it's my house," Clint said, grabbing a slice, "It just needs a little work, well maybe more than a little in this case, but..." He shrugged as he trailed off.

"Well, I have to say, the lack of fence is a good start for the outside," Phil said, looking over to where it had stood.

"Yeah, we might put up a new fence, depends on the time needed on the insides." Clint said.

"You think you're going to have it up for sale before summer is out?" Phil asked.

"Maybe," Clint said, "If we don't, we can do some more improvements on the interior over the winter."

Phil nodded, "Makes sense." There was a slight whine and Phil glanced at the window to see the dog looking out at him. Clint's low chuckle set an unexpected roll of heat through Phil's body.

"C'mon boy," Clint said, getting up and going to the door and letting the dog out. The dog scampered over to sniff at Phil, but made no move to go to the pizza. "Phil, this is Lucky. Lucky, sit."

Clint took his seat back as the dog settled next to Phil watching him eat. They ate and talked more and when they were both stuffed, Clint gave one slice to Lucky and insisted that Phil take the leftovers.

*

Natasha and Thor were taking a road trip to get more supplies on Saturday, which left Clint alone with Lucky. He debated what to do, before making his way over to Phil's door and knocking. He really hadn't gotten the man out of his head. It wasn't long before Phil came to the door in a t-shirt that revealed surprisingly good looking arms and jeans.

"Clint," Phil greeted. "Can I help you with something?"

"I was going to go to the store, get some steaks and grill, and I was wondering if you wanted to join me?" Clint asked.

"That sounds nice actually," Phil agreed. "You want to bring it over here? I think we'll need a table for steak."

"Well, you don't _need_ one," Clint said, he couldn't help teasing a little.

"How about, I think it would make it easier if we had a table," Phil said. "I can make dessert."

"Alright," Clint agreed, "Do you want me to pick anything up at the store?"

"Um, fruit, I could do a fruit salad as well?" Phil said.

Clint nodded, "Corn on the cob, sound good?"

"Yeah," Phil agreed with a nod.

"You need anything else?" Clint asked.

"I think I have everything I need," Phil agreed. Clint flashed him a grin, before heading towards his car. "I'll be back in an hour." He was looking forward to spending a bit more time with his current neighbor.

*

Coulson idled his car in the driveway as he eyed his house. The temperature had skyrocketed, in a freaky early summer heat wave. He dreaded heading into the house, didn't want to exit the AC of the car to get to the house and turn on his AC, which was only in one room, but it was one at least that would be cool.

He sighed, turning the car off and heading towards the indoors. There was a slight ruff that startled him on his walk in, and he glanced under the trees that lined the property between his and Clint's. Lucky lay under the shades of the trees and he wasn't alone. Clint lay in the abandoned garden, hands behind his head, biceps bulging slightly in the sleeveless t-shirt. His knees were up so that his toes dug into the soft dirt.

"Hey," Clint said, voice sounding rough.

"Hey," Coulson said, before arching an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to stay cool," Clint answered. "House is kind of an oven."

"And you're on the ground because...?"

"Shade of the tree, ground is cooler," Clint said, before asking in a tone that Phil thought might be flirtatious, "Want to join me?"

"I think I'll pass, I'm thinking I'll have a cold shower while my AC cools down my room," Phil said.

Clint made a soft noise of complaint, "You tease..."

"Still no water?" Phil asked.

"No," Clint said, with a sigh. "And the hotel doesn't allow dogs, and I'm not leaving Lucky, so I think I'm going to sleep under the stars tonight."

Phil hesitated, "It's not going to cool down that much;if you want, you can come in and cool down."

"Seriously?" Clint asked. "Both of us."

"Yes," Phil agreed. "Of course, he's probably baking under that fur coat."

"Yeah, poor guy," Clint agreed, tilting his head back to look at his dog. "Thanks, Phil."

"Not a problem," Phil said, "Come over when you're ready."

"Sure," Clint said, going to get up. "Can I steal a shower too?"

"Yeah," Phil agreed.

"I'm going to grab a change of clothes then and I'll be over," Clint said, rolling to his feet.

"Try not to die in your oven of a house, just let yourself in," Phil said, opening the door and leaving it unlocked. He went straight to the bedroom and turned the AC on and then went to grab a quick shower. He changed into loose shorts and a t-shirt, before venturing back out into the house. He found Clint in his living room, looking at the photos of his family.

"Shower's free if you want in," Phil offered. "How do you feel about sandwiches for dinner?"

"You're feeding me too?" Clint asked.

"If you'd like me to," Phil said.

"Well, sure, sandwich sounds good," Clint said. "Where's the bathroom?"

"Through there, close the door, don't really want to blow the AC," Phil said, before going to make them something to eat as Clint went to shower, Lucky following at his heels. He frowned, noticing a slight limp in the dog's gait.

Phil made the sandwiches and went back to the bedroom. Lucky was on the wood floor in front the AC and appeared to be sleeping. He didn't twitch upon Phil's entry. Phil set the food down and then went back out to grab a pitcher of water, so they wouldn't have to venture into the warm house very often. 

He arrived just in time to see Clint emerge from the bathroom. He'd pulled on shorts that sat low on his hips. His nipples were peaked from either the cold water or the AC. He was toweling off his hair as he happily informed Phil, "That felt great."

Phil stared, he couldn't help it.

"Phil?" Clint questioned, pulling the towel away to look at him. Phil saw his eyes flicker over Phil's body, before settling on Phil's crotch. "Oh." The towel was tossed aside as Clint made his way over to him; one large hand reached out and wrapped around Phil's neck, pulling him into a kiss. Phil couldn't believe it, what the hell was Clint doing kissing him? Holy shit, Clint was kissing him. No, Clint was pulling away and Phil didn't want it to be, he surged forward, pressing into Clint's body. He moaned as he felt Clint's hardness against his thigh, proving that it wasn't just Phil involved.

They had dinner late that night and despite the heat outside, spent most of the night twined around the other. It was still too warm for a run in the morning, but Phil got his exercise by rutting against Clint, who wouldn't stay still and seemed to enjoy rolling them about the bed.

*

The next day was more of that same heat, and Clint had found himself at Phil's for a second night in a row. The thunderstorm blew in the day after and Clint found himself with a full house. The streets were like a river and washed tree limbs and debris. Clint had been through worse, and was sure that the while the roof needed to be replaced, it would hold, so long as a tree didn't knock it down or a tornado touch down (despite assurances by the locals that they were too close to Lake Michigan for a tornado to ever cause any damage to the town). He ended up with a full house as Natasha and Thor were there when the storm blew in and really it was probably safer to hole up in his basement than a bathroom by the beach or an RV in the woods. He kind of worried about Phil, but Phil had lived in the area longer than he had, so he probably had somewhere to go.

They went back to work the next day and Clint ias surprised to see Phil's car pull into his garage in the early afternoon. "You okay?" Clint called as Phil walked up to the house.

"Yeah, Credit Union didn't have power and we probably won't get it until tomorrow, so... Storm Day," Phil shrugged.

"Awesome," Clint said, greeting him with a grin.

"I suppose, not sure what I'll do, I didn't have power this morning, doubt I'll have it now," Phil said, with a slight roll of his eyes.

"Well, I still have the generator, we could hook it up, watch some movies, power a fan or two?" Clint suggested.

"Power the AC maybe?" Phil asked, because it was humid out now.

"Can do," Clint said with said with a nod.

"Sounds like a plan," Phil agreed. "I've got a gas oven, so I'll whip up some dinner for us?"

"Dinner and a movie, sounds like a date," Clint said with a grin.

"I guess it does," Phil agreed.

"I'll see you later tonight then," Clint said, turning to go back to work.

"Later," Phil agreed, softly.

It was later that night that Clint hooked the generator up to Phil's house to power the TV and blu ray player and the air conditioner. They got distracted halfway through the movie as they reacquainted themselves with the other's body. They had gone one night without this after all.

"We going to keep doing this?" Clint asked.

"I don't mind, if you don't," Phil murmured, nipping at Clint's jaw.

"I'll pick up some lube and condoms then?" Clint suggested.

"Yeah, I bet you'd look good on my cock," Phil growled into his ear. Clint moaned, thrusting into Phil's body. Yeah, they were totally going to keep this up.

*

Phil slumped home late a few nights later. One of the teller's drawers had been off and he'd had to stay late until they had figured out why. It was a hassle and he was fucking exhausted. He rubbed at his forehead, trying to think of what he could make that was quick and easy.

"You're home late," Clint said and Phil glanced at him.

"Drawer was off," he answered, looking over at his neighbor who was standing on his back porch. "Can't go until they're balanced."

Clint stared at him, not answering for a while.

"Clint?" he questioned. His voice seemed to spur the other man, who nimbly jumped off the back porch and made a beeline toward him. "Clint?" he asked again, moments before Clint's lips were on his and he was bustled against the doorway. Phil felt a surge of energy as Clint licked his way into Phil's mouth; he moaned eagerly, getting his hand on Clint's ass and squeezing.

Clint broke away to gasp and breathe.

"What I'd do?" Phil asked, wondering what he did to get this reaction.

"You look really hot in those glasses," Clint answered, capturing his lips in another kiss.

When Phil got another chance to breathe he said, "Forgot I was wearing them."

"Keep 'em on," Clint instructed, before adding a softer, "Please."

"Yeah, I can do that," Phil agreed readily. "AC?"

"Yeah..." Clint agreed, letting Phil go so that he could open the door and get him inside. Clint stripped them on the way, leaving a trail of clothes.

*

"This good?" Clint asked, offering Natasha a spot in the house to call her own. 

"It'll do," Natasha agreed. They finally got water running and power, so Natasha was moving in. Thor was too, but he had gone to finish packing up the campsite and Clint expected that he would be back soon. Clint set down one of Natasha's bags and went to get another bag of her things. Natasha followed along and together they got her stuff set up the way she wanted it. Thor arrived shortly after and they started unloading his things.

"Getting company?" Phil's voice suddenly asked, as Clint lugged one of Thor's bags into the house. Phil was on his porch, looking over at him curiously.

"I got power and water, they suddenly love me," Clint answered with an easy grin.

"Ah, but do you have an AC yet?" Phil asked.

Clint laughed, "Nope, you're still special like that."

He watched as Phil smiled, looking pleased, "Good. Offer's open if you need take a break from them?"

Clint smiled as he agreed, "I probably will, maybe a little later."

"Whenever," Phil said, giving him a smile before ducking into his house. Clint turned back to his own house to see Natasha watching him with an arched eyebrow. "Problem?"

"No," Natasha stated.

"Good," Clint said. "Why don't you guys get settled and I'll cook?"

"Alright," Natasha agreed, disappearing into the house. They ate on the back porch after Clint had grilled up their dinner. When they were done, Clint jumped off the porch and headed toward Phil's side door, with a shout of, "Going to steal some of Phil's AC."

"How come only you get to steal his AC?" Thor asked. "Why are we not invited to share in his bounty of air conditioning?"

"Because that's their code for sex," Natasha said and Clint refused to look back, because he knew Natasha would be smirking and Thor would either be dumbstruck or proud of him.

"Enjoy your fornication, my friend, we will guard your homestead!" Thor called after him a moment later, which meant proud of him and that he was probably planning some ridiculous feast for breakfast. He pushed it out of his mind and tried to prevent himself from blushing as he let himself in. He didn't want to explain to Phil about Thor's peculiarities.

*

Coulson settled into the staff break room with his sandwich. It was becoming more of a habit lately, as he shared more meals with Clint who always seemed to eat most of whatever Coulson made. Coulson supposed he still wasn't used to cooking for two, because when Clint cooked, there was always plenty of leftovers. It was odd, bouncing between no leftovers and lots of leftovers, but it was worth it, because if they ate together, they invariably ended up in Phil's bedroom where...

Coulson shook his head, because he was at work and didn't need to be thinking about how Clint moaned or the taste of his skin.

"Hey Phil," Steve greeted as he joined him in the break room with his own sandwich. Steve was the head teller for Phil's branch. He'd gone to school at the local community college for art classes, but had started as a teller to pay for his schooling. He'd switched majors part way through, because he liked the job, and Phil had been glad that he had, because though Steve may have been one of the most patient people Phil knew, he wasn't going to be pushed around by an unruly customer.

"Hello Steve," Phil greeted back. 

"Sandwich again?" Steve asked, taking a seat.

"I had company last night, not used to cooking for two." Phil admitted ruefully. 

"But it's supposed to be easier to cook for two," Steve pointed out with a smile.

"It probably is, but I've been cooking for just myself for years," Phil said.

"Point," Steve agreed. He paused, "So you've been having company a lot lately?"

"The new neighbor that's renovating the Carter place," Phil said. "He didn't have any power when that heat wave struck and I invited him to cool off, since I have that AC unit and... we just started having dinner more often."

"That's good?" Steve asked, looking slightly confused.

"It is," Phil said, firmly. He genuinely liked Clint; the man was funny and kind. Phil could tell that Clint loved his friends, that he had made a little family for himself who traveled around fixing houses.

"Is that the guy that Tony saw you walking a dog with?" Steve asked.

"Uh... yes," Phil said, because sometimes they did take walks together.

"Um, Tony said it looked like you were holding hands," Steve added softly.

"And if we were?" Phil asked, arching an eyebrow.

"It's kind of a couple-y thing to do, and you seem so happy lately, that I guess congratulations would be in order," Steve said, quickly, his face had turned red and he looked a little awkward.

"He flips houses for a living," Phil said softly.

"Oh, so, it's...?"

"A short term deal," Phil said, "I'm not nearly conceited enough to think that I'm good enough for him to change his whole life." He hesitated, before admitting, "It wouldn't surprise me if he had someone in every town he's flipped houses in."

Steve's hand came out to pat his, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked, but you know Tony..."

"He's a gossip-monger and his gossip has a way of getting under your skin?" Phil asked.

Steve nodded, "I'm not going to tell him."

"It's Tony, Steve, he'll figure out that you know something about it, and then show up in my office to fix the computer, and whine about how I talk to you and not him."

"Never mind that he works out at the main branch."

"Never mind that I like you better than him."

Steve smiled at that, before offering a way out with a change of subject, "Oh, hey is Nick coming up for the Fourth?"

"He is," Phil nodded.

"So canoe trip?" Steve asked.

"Definitely," Phil said, looking forward to seeing his best friend again. After Nick and the Credit Union's board of directors had disagreed a couple years ago, Nick had left and had found another job downstate. He came up once a year to visit with old friends.

*

Clint hummed as he painted. Natasha had worked out the wiring, Thor and he had fixed the pipes. Things were starting come together and the house was looking good.

"Have you looked at any other houses?" Natasha asked, appearing at his side.

"Um, no, not yet," Clint admitted.

"We may not be making our deadline, but this house should still sell before the school year starts," Natasha pointed out.

"True, I just haven't done it yet," Clint said, shrugging. Honestly, he found watching Phil come apart more interesting right now.

"We are moving on after this, right?" Natasha asked.

Clint looked at her, "Of course."

Natasha narrowed her eyes, "Then stop thinking about your fling and concentrate on our job. This was supposed to be a quick turn around job, not a long one."

"I am doing my job," Clint objected.

"When we were in a time crunch, you used to work until you slept," Natasha pointed out. "And now you go over there and sleep in an air conditioned room. This isn't like you."

"You're right, it isn't like me," Clint agreed. "But... don't I get to have a little fun in my life?"

"Yes," Natasha said.

"That's all it is, Tasha, I'm just a little fun to him and that's all I'm having," Clint stated.

Natasha stared at him, before nodding, turning and leaving him to work. Clint sighed and glanced over at Phil's house. Maybe it was time to start cutting back on his visits.

*

Phil finished hanging his laundry up on the line as the door banged open, followed by heavy boots on the creaky old steps. Phil wondered when that was going to be replaced, if it ever was. There was a jangle of metal and he soon found Lucky cutting through his clothes.

"Hey boy," Phil chuckled, patting the dog. "Walk time?"

The dog wagged his tail and a few seconds later, Clint rounded the trees, looking at the dog with resigned frustration. "Hey, Phil."

"Hi Clint, going for a walk?" Phil asked.

"Yeah," Clint said, with a nod, holding up the leash.

"Mind if I join you?" Phil asked.

"You want to come with us?" Clint asked.

"Yeah, I haven't seen you around much lately," Phil admitted.

Clint glanced away, "I... I've been busy with the house."

"Back on schedule?"

"Just about, couple of long nights involved, but..." Clint shrugged. "Tasha doesn't want to be stuck here for the winter."

"Looking at other places?" Phil asked, frowning, because he did enjoy Clint's company.

"Little research here and there," Clint agreed with a slight nod. He moved to snap the leash onto Lucky's collar and he started heading toward the park. Phil fell into step next to him.

"How much longer are you going to be here?" Phil asked.

Clint shrugged, "Not sure, why?"

"My fraternity brother is coming up and we do this whole canoe trip with some others," Phil explained. "I thought you might like to come along."

Clint was quiet, before he asked. "Who all goes?"

"Some friends from around here and their wives or husbands," Phil answered. "Some are old fraternity brothers, some are friends from the banks, some are Nick's friends."

"So I'd be going as what exactly?" Clint asked.

Phil paused and considered that question, "As a friend of mine, unless I've misread the situation."

"The situation?" Clint asked.

"I'm your temporary bed warmer or bed cooler considering that I provide you with air conditioning as well."

Phil stared straight ahead, missing the pained look that Clint gave him, as he admitted, "I don't know if I'd use those terms..."

"Are you planning on keeping in touch with me when you leave?" Phil asked, looking at him.

"I... I don't look back," Clint stated.

"So you'll move on and I'll hopefully be a fond memory," Phil said. "And I knew that before getting into this with you. So you could come as a friend of mine, but we just canoe and then grill out afterwards. It's fun, I thought you might like it."

"Yeah," Clint agreed, "I'll... I'll think about it, alright?"

"Alright," Phil agreed, letting the subject drop. Phil had walked Lucky before with Clint, he'd found it peaceful and nice, but today's walk felt awkward. Phil realized as he lay in his empty bed that Clint was already pulling away from him. Phil closed his eyes and knew he had to let go.

*

Clint sipped his drink as he showed prospective buyers around the house. It was done, except for a few finishing touches that needed to be fixed. He smiled, doing his best to charm them as he discussed what his team had done and what else he'd be willing to do for a buyer, such as repainting some walls they had deliberately left an off-white or put down carpeting. There was also the option to finish the renovation of the upstairs to make it a separate apartment.

"You could do that?" The tall, muscular blond asked, looking vaguely surprised at that.

"Yeah," Clint answered, guiding them over toward the stairs. "There's a door right there, it already has a basic kitchen setup. All that's needed are the appliances."

"You do something to lock this doorway up?" One of the others asked, tapping the doorframe.

"Yeah, actually, the previous owner had it done so the door blended with the wall. First time I was in here the real estate agent couldn't find the door. So we could camouflage it again, if you wanted or make it obvious, depending on what you were using the house for though. If you want to head upstairs, Natasha is waiting to show anyone around up there."

Clint took another sip of his drink as the majority of them headed upstairs. He turned to find Phil standing there. "Hey," he greeted.

"Hi," Phil said. "Saw you were having your open house, figured I'd come by see what you did with the place."

"You could have asked," Clint pointed out, "I would have been happy to show you around."

Phil shrugged, "Maybe I was hoping you'd offer."

Clint hesitated, before shrugging, because things had cooled off between them lately and they hadn't seen each other nearly as much.

"So show me around this floor?" Phil requested when he'd been quiet too long. "Or I can catch up with Steve and Bruce."

"Steve and Bruce?" Clint asked.

"Steve was the one that perked right up when you mentioned turning the upstairs into an apartment," Phil explained.

"He wants to be a landlord?" Clint asked as he ushered Phil toward the kitchen.

"No, his best friend was injured and is being honorably discharged," Phil explained. "He wants him to come live with him, but Bucky is also fiercely independent."

"So housemates without being housemates?" Clint asked.

"Yeah," Phil paused as he looked around the kitchen. "You really changed this around."

"It needed it," Clint said, looking around.

"It looks good," Phil agreed. "You're very talented."

Clint smiled, "Thanks, I attribute a lot of it to the team though. Thor's the one who did the carpentry after all."

"Where is Thor?" Phil asked.

"Plotting repairs for the garage," Clint admitted, indicating the small back window.

"Do they need some?" Phil asked.

"New doors, new system and a paint job basically," Clint answered. "Everything else is good, but we wanted to clean it up, make it look nice for whoever buys this place."

"That's nice," Phil decided.

Clint smiled at him, before guiding him toward the mudroom and the two back bedrooms. Phil looked his fill, before nodding. "It really does look great."

"Thanks," Clint said, and headed back toward the kitchen.

"Do anything to the basement?" Phil asked, pausing at the top of the stairs.

"A little, do you want to see it?" Clint asked.

"Steve is going to ask me what I think," Phil pointed out, smiling at him. "I'm going to have to give him my opinion."

"And I suppose you won't talk it up for me?" Clint asked.

"I plan to be honest, so you better impress me Barton," Phil said, stepping into Clint's space.

"I haven't done that yet?" Clint asked. Clint watched as Phil's eyes dropped and Clint shuddered as Phil thoroughly checked him out.

"As a house flipper, not yet," Phil murmured, dryly. Clint would be insulted until he remembered that one of Phil's friends had seemed interested in the house. "As a sexual partner? Oh yes, and I have to say you do clean up nicely."

"You wanna mess me up when this over?" Clint asked, because he understood just how fun that could be.

"Steve rode his Harley over, Bruce has that big green monster of a car," Phil said. "Come over when they're gone."

"Sounds like a plan?" Clint agreed, before reaching and flipping the lights on to the basement. "Basement is down there, I need to stay up here though, greet my guests."

Phil nodded and headed down the stairs. Clint watched him go, before heading back toward the front of the house to greet any other guests. He arrived just as a group came downstairs and he noticed the tall blond, who he thought was Steve, was missing. Clint smiled and shook hands with those that were leaving and greeted some more coming in. He rather lost track of time as he answered others questions. 

"You did some nice work," the blond said, appearing next to him with his hand out. "Steve Rogers."

"Clint Barton," Clint answered, taking the offered hand and shaking it. "And thanks."

"I'm glad Phil mentioned that you were having this actually," Steve said. "At the very least it gave me some ideas about what I want to look for, and your friend Natasha was very informative about being a landlord."

"She would be," Clint agreed. "You going to be making an offer?"

"I've gotta make a couple calls," Steve answered and turned slightly as he raised his voice "And Bruce has to tell me if he'd give the loan."

"You have to fill out the paperwork first Steve," Bruce answered, from where he was talking to Phil, but he smiled back.

"They're helping me, I... I've never bought a house before," Steve admitted, with a blush.

Clint chuckled softly, "Well, I'll let them guide you through the process if you're going to make an offer on this one. Any other house though...."

"Yeah?"

Clint shrugged, "Friend of Phil's, he's been a good neighbor."

"He's a great guy," Steve stated and Clint nodded his agreement.

"Come on, Steve, I'm hungry and Phil promised to feed us," Bruce said coming over to them. 

"Thanks again," Steve said, offering his hand again. Clint shook it.

"You did some nice work," Bruce said, taking Clint's hand next.

Phil didn't grab his hand, just smiled at him. "I'll see you later."

"Yeah, later," Clint agreed, watching him head out with his co-workers. Clint watched them walk across the lawn and disappear into Phil's house. He felt stupidly jealous of Rogers, because he was able to claim Phil as a friend and there was clearly a mutual respect going on between them. Could there be something more between them? He hoped there wouldn't be, but it's not like he would get a say in it. He'd already put an offer in on another house in another state; they were going to be leaving sooner rather than later and he wouldn't see Phil again. This just might be their last night together given how they'd stopped having sex as much lately, and Clint decided he needed to make it special.

*

Phil floated on the tube, eyes closed as the others splashed in the lake. They'd canoed the river earlier and had headed to another friend's house to grill. Phil had decided to relax and had settled in the tube that was tied to the dock. It was nice and peaceful and Phil could try to forget that Clint had left just a few short days before. The house wasn't sold yet, but they were successful enough that he didn't need to stay and wait for it to sell. He did have some nibbles on it, including Steve who was hoping that it wouldn't sell before Bucky had a chance to look it over. Phil wondered briefly if Clint would come check up on it, if it didn't sell, but decided not to get his hopes up.

The clang of someone walking on the dock caught his attention and he glanced toward it as a set of feet pushed at his tube; if it hadn't been tied off, he would have been in the middle of the river and have to work to get back to the dock. Phil half-heartedly swatted at the feet and was rewarded with a beer can to the stomach. He glared up at Nick, who smirked as he looked down at him.

"You've been off since I got here, what's happened?" Nick asked as he opened his own can.

"Did a stupid thing," Phil admitted, because they were mostly alone now.

"How so?" Nick asked.

"I may have fallen for a guy who was just in it for the sex," Phil said, opening his own beer.

"You have a fuck buddy?" Nick asked, sounding shocked. He probably was; Phil admitted to being pretty straight-laced.

"I did," Phil said. "He moved away."

"Because of you?"

"Because that's what he does. He's a house flipper, he buys a house, renovates it, sells it for a profit," Phil explained, taking a sip of his beer. "And I, foolishly, fell for him."

"You realize he probably has like a trail of lovers in every city he's been in?" Nick asked.

"Yeah," Phil admitted, taking a long swig of his beer.

"That sucks though," Nick said. "You getting caught up in it..."

"He was gorgeous, Nick," Phil said. "Muscled and okay, he wasn't classically handsome, but when he smiled, his whole face lit up and his ass..."

"So he was hot and you thought with your dick instead of your brain?"

"Yeah, but he was so nice," Phil added. "He had a dog and I know he loves that dog, because he did things for the dog that he wouldn't do for himself. He loves his friends, he teases them, but they tease him right back. They're his family and... I guess I wasn't a part of it."

"You tell him this?" Nick asked.

"No, I told him, I knew we were temporary," Phil admitted, "Because I wasn't foolish enough to think that he'd stay for someone like me."

Fury grunted, "He'd be an idiot then."

"I'm nothing special," Phil said, tilting his head back to look at Nick.

"You are too," Fury stated. "One day you'll meet a guy out there that sees that."

Phil sighed, "Maybe."

Fury was silent a moment, before he asked, "Have you thought about telling him how you feel?"

"No," Phil said, shaking his head.

"Why not?" Nick said. "Worst that can happen is that he's going to tell you he's not interested. And well, that's what you think anyway."

"You think there's a chance that he'd be interested in staying in one place when he has a job where he travels all over fixing up houses?"

"No," Nick said. "I think there's a chance that he'd want to find a compromise so that he can do his job and still have you in his life."

"He doesn't look back, he told me that," Phil said.

"Not looking back, doesn't mean he's not willing to move ahead with you by his side," Nick argued. "You said you think you fell in love with him, but you didn't tell him. I don't think he's a mind reader; maybe he thought you weren't interested in long distance, because you told him it was temporary, did you think of that?"

"No," Phil said, as he considered it. "What if I tell him and he's not interested?"

"Then at least you'll have gone down fighting, which is more than you can say you've done now."

Phil frowned, taking another sip of his beer as he mulled it over.

"You've always been a fighter, Phil, don't change that now," Nick encouraged softly.

"Yeah, I'll think about it," Phil agreed.

"Good," Nick stated and Phil felt the pressure on the tube as Nick pushed it out towards the middle of the river again. Phil found himself floating away from the dock and spinning slightly to see Nick waving and holding up the rope that had tied him. Phil glared as he realized he was either going to have to float a bit or lose the rest of his beer. Nick seemed to realize his conundrum at the same time and started laughing on the dock.

*

Clint tucked his tools into the box and went to settle next to Lucky. He sighed softly and dug his hand into Lucky's fur, wanting to feel connected to someone, something. This place was nice and all, but he found himself longing for the humid heat of the shores of Lake Michigan.

"Well, you look miserable," Natasha said, stepping into the room and taking a seat next to him.

"I'm not though," Clint denied, stroking Lucky, who had shifted to rest his head on Clint's lap.

"You miss him," Natasha said, ignoring his denial.

"No, I don't," Clint said. "And even if I do, I won't let it interfere with our job."

"Clint..." Natasha said slowly. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" Clint asked, looking at her.

"I shouldn't have pushed you to break it off with him," Natasha admitted. "I... I got scared."

"You don't get scared," Clint replied, earning him a punch to the shoulder.

"Yes, I do," Natasha said. "When it comes to you, I get scared about the thought of losing you."

"I'm not going anywhere," Clint said.

"I am losing you. This is back in Lakeston," Natasha said, tapping on his chest. "With Phil."

"No, it's right here with us."

"Clint, you managed to fall in love while we worked on that house," Natasha pointed out. "And I got scared that you were going to quit and leave us like Sam-"

"Sam never wanted to leave New York." 

"-Or Carol-"

"She got her pilot's license, which was why she was working with us."

"-Or Jan-"

"We were always an means to an end for Jan, she wanted her own business."

" _Luke _," Natasha said with such force and Clint knew he had been beaten.__

__"Okay, Luke fell in love and decided to settle down," Clint admitted._ _

__"Yes," Natasha agreed. "And they are very happy together. I hear she's expecting as well."_ _

__"You know Danny decided to leave too about the same time," Clint reminded her gently._ _

__"Luke found him another job," Natasha reminded him._ _

__"You think I wouldn't want my family nearby?" Clint asked, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her close. She leaned into him._ _

__"Sap," Natasha murmured._ _

__"You wouldn't love me if I wasn't," Clint pointed out._ _

__"Perhaps," Natasha said in a tone that said she wasn't so sure, but Clint knew that it meant he was right and she didn't want to admit to it._ _

__"I don't want to quit my job," Clint said. "I like what I do."_ _

__"Then don't," Natasha said. "Maybe we'll stay in Michigan from now on and only take on houses in other parts of the country on occasion or we'll take longer breaks between them."_ _

__"You and Thor will get bored," Clint said with a sigh._ _

__"Thor has been talking about building a house from scratch, maybe we'll start on that project," Natasha said. "He did like the woods in Lakeston."_ _

__"You think you'd be happy?" Clint asked._ _

__"I don't know, but I'm not happy seeing you like this," Natasha said, stroking his face. "I'm willing to give it a try if you want to, and I promise to tell you if I'm not happy."_ _

__"I guess I can call him?" Clint suggested._ _

__Natasha poked him in the side, "Go and talk to him, sign the papers for selling the house to Rogers, and make sure installation of the appliances upstairs goes smoothly."_ _

__Clint nodded, "Alright, I'll talk to him and see."_ _

__*_ _

__Phil hung up the phone with a sigh. He'd been trying to reach Clint and hadn't been able to get a hold of him. He considered trying to call Natasha or Thor, but he didn't have their numbers and he couldn't shake the impression that Natasha didn't like him that much. He felt out of sorts, even more so since Nick had left. The only thing he had to look forward to was Steve and Bucky moving in next door and even that wasn't very exciting. Steve would be a good neighbor though._ _

__He glanced up at the soft knocking on his front door and stood. He blinked in surprise as he peered out his window and found Clint there. Clint stood and if Phil had to choose a word to describe him in that moment it would be nervous, which was silly. There was no reason for Clint to be nervous, was there?_ _

__"Clint?" Phil said as he opened the door._ _

__"Hey Phil, I was... I was wondering if we could talk?"_ _

__"Yeah, sure," Phil agreed, stepping back and letting Clint in._ _

__"Something the matter with the house?" Phil asked. "I thought Steve put an offer on it."_ _

__"No, but yes," Clint stammered. "Nothing's the matter, Steve put an offer and we accepted it."_ _

__"Good, congratulations," Phil said. "So here to sign the paperwork?"_ _

__"Yes, and do the finishing touches to make the upstairs an apartment," Clint said._ _

__"Ah, so, this is what?" Phil asked, because if this was some sort of booty call..._ _

__"I... I wanted to talk to you, too, so that stuff, that's an excuse to come here," Clint corrected._ _

__"You need an excuse to come see me?" Phil asked._ _

__"I will if this goes badly," Clint stated._ _

__"If what goes badly?"_ _

__"Will you give me a chance to talk, please," Clint requested._ _

__Phil made a gesture indicating he should go ahead._ _

__"I'm not good with words, so I need you to just listen for a bit, okay?" Clint asked and Phil nodded. "I've... I've never had a house that I wanted to come back to..."_ _

__"Clint, I don't...." Phil interrupted, because he didn't want to hear reasons why it wouldn't work._ _

__"Until this house," Clint overrode his objections, pointing his fingers at the floor of Phil's house._ _

__Phil blinked, staring at Clint, "Until this house? My house? But you never did anything here?"_ _

__"I know, but it has something no other house has," Clint said, moving closer._ _

__"What?" Phil asked._ _

__"It has you," Clint said softly. "And I don't want to leave you behind. I don't want to look back and see you there. I want to keep looking forward and I want to see you when I look forward."_ _

__"Really?"_ _

__"I know it wouldn't be easy," Clint agreed with a nod. "I wouldn't be around as much I should, because I like what I do, but I want to come back here after a job. I want to call you and let you know how it's going. What do you say, Phil?"_ _

__"You want me?" Phil asked, because he was kind of stuck on that._ _

__"Yes," Clint said, leaning in._ _

__"You don't sell yourself very well," Phil said, still bewildered._ _

__"I thought you'd appreciate the honesty," Clint said, frowning and stepping away, looking rejected._ _

__Phil reached for him, pulling him close, "I do appreciate the honesty, and I would never ask you to give up your job for me. We're adults, we can compromise and figure us out."_ _

__"Us?"_ _

__"Us," Phil agreed, leaning in to capture Clint's lips in a kiss. Clint surged and pressed into him, backing them slowly until Phil hit the wall. He pulled back, "How long are you here for?"_ _

__"Couple days," Clint answered, "Seriously, Natasha gave me the installation time and wrapping up of the paperwork being as a chace to talk to you."_ _

__"Natasha is alright with us?"_ _

__"She is, she was worried I was going to ditch her."_ _

__"You wouldn't do that," Phil protested._ _

__"I wouldn't, but sometimes we get these stupid ideas in our heads," Clint explained._ _

__"Like thinking this was just sex for you?" Phil asked._ _

__"Well, I kinda thought a guy like you wouldn't be interested in a long-distance thing," Clint admitted._ _

__"I actually don't use a lot of my vacation time..." Phil admitted, giving Clint a little grin._ _

__"Really?" Clint asked._ _

__"A week around the holidays and a week in the summer," Phil said, "So, don't think it'll just be you visiting, because I would love to see more of the country with you."_ _

__Clint smiled, slow and soft. "I'd like that, but you're going to have to help out if we're working on a house."_ _

__"I can paint," Phil offered, causing Clint to laugh and steal another kiss._ _

__"That works for me," Clint agreed._ _

__"Can I make a request?" Phil asked._ _

__"Hmm, yeah," Clint said._ _

__"January and February," Phil said softly._ _

__"What about 'em?"_ _

__"If at all possible, I want you home with me then," Phil requested._ _

__"I'll try my best," Clint said and it sounded like he was promising that. "Any reason why?"_ _

__"There have been times in the winter when it’s time for me to go to sleep, and I climb into my cold bed and I feel... so cold and lonely in my bed."_ _

__Clint stared at him, before promising, "That's not happening this year."_ _

__Phil leaned in and kissed Clint, because he believed that Clint would do everything in his power come winter to be there for him. Phil would make some sacrifices for this, but he knew Clint would, too. They'd find a way to make this work._ _


End file.
